Secrets
by Kylie Anderson
Summary: After Proflier, Profiled, Morgan speaks with Hotch and learns something about everyone. We all have secrets.


Secrets

Derek Morgan walked through the doorway of his mother's house. It was as silent which was unusual. For a minute, he thought he walked into the wrong house. "Derek!" A female voice shouted before softening her voice. "Derek."

Looking around, Morgan saw his elder sister walking towards him. He knew for sure she would be embarrassed about having such a brother…he knew she would ask him to leave or treat him like a victim. "They let you go! What took them so long? Those jerks need a lesson…Gordinsky's got it in for you. That's it! They finally found out he was a racist, right?" Sarah said quickly wrapping her brother in a warm hug. "I'm so glad you're back!"

It seemed to him that she had no idea what really happened. For once, Morgan was relived about keeping the secret he had kept since he was fifteen. "I'm glad I'm back too sis." Morgan said hugging her tightly.

Hearing the commotion, his mother and other sister came out. "Oh Derek! Thank goodness!" His mother said joining in on the hug.

His other sister laughed. "You just had to ruin ma's birthday! That's our little bro. Always getting into trouble…" His sister joked.

Morgan pretended to look offended. "Hey! Hey! Stop picking on the baby…" Morgan said putting his hands up.

Shaking her head, his mother smiled. "Come on Derek. We've got the cake in the fridge. I'm sure you'll want some…" His mother said rubbing his back gently.

Silently, Morgan followed his mother and his sisters.

((-))

At the police station, Morgan saw Aaron Hotcher packing up a few files. Jason Gideon was pouring himself a cup of coffee while Spencer Reid stood nearby talking excitedly. Jennifer Jareau was placing evidence bags into a cardboard box. Morgan silently made his way over to Hotch. He didn't want the others to notice him.

After Hotch had placed the last file into his briefcase, he looked up to see Morgan standing beside him. "Morgan," Hotch stated surprised.

Clearing his throat, Morgan sighed. "Thank you…for not telling my family…" Morgan managed to say shortly.

Hotch lead Morgan into a small conference room and closed the door. "Why didn't you tell me you had a criminal record?" Hotch questioned softly.

Morgan filched at the word 'criminal record'. "I didn't tell you because…I'm not that kid anymore. Hotch, you've got to understand…when my dad died, I felt like I had to take his place. I was always watching out for my mama and my sisters. At the same time, I started hanging out with the wrong crowds. I got into a lot of trouble." Morgan said trying to make Hotch see what life was like for him. "But I'm not like that Hotch…that was just a stupid kid who kept screwing up."

Hotch closed his eyes for a moment. "Why didn't you ever tell anyone about what happened to you?" Hotch asked gently.

Feeling frustrated, Morgan began to pace around. "Because Hotch, I've got secrets! Heck, we all do! It's only human that we keep our secrets secret! We all want privacy! How would you feel if I went into your past?" Morgan asked angrily.

There was a moment of silence before Hotch looked directly into Morgan's eyes sadly. "Morgan, I'm sorry." Hotch said honestly. "I'm sorry about everything. I wish Carl hadn't done those things to you. I'm sorry we had to dig around in your personal life."

Morgan let out a dry laugh. "Isn't it funny Hotch? Carl destroyed my life…but at the same time, he created me. I would have never joined the FBI. Heck, seeing the path I was going down, I would have probably been arrested by the FBI." Morgan said sadly looking down at the ground. "If I had only told, those three boys would still be alive."

Hotch shook his head. "You were just a kid. Carl would have still gone on killing." Hotch said gently.

Looking at Hotch in a sad manner, Morgan fiddled with his hands. "What am I going to do Hotch? I can't undo my past. I can't stop my father from getting killed. I can't go back and stop Carl. Everyone is going to think of me as a victim." Morgan confessed his inner thoughts.

"No one is going to think any less of you than we did yesterday." Hotch said truthfully. "I can promise you that much."

"Thanks Hotch." Morgan whispered with a tear falling from his face.

At that moment, Reid entered the room with a large smile. "Hey Morgan! JJ's gotten Gordinsky to write you a formal letter saying that he was indeed bias towards you. Once he's finished with that letter, he's going to start writing his resignation letter." Reid said happily.

Morgan swallowed and attempted to smile back at Reid. "That's great!" Morgan said in a false cheery voice.

Reid, however, did not notice. He left the room quickly with a smile still on his face. Hotch was about to leave the room when Morgan cleared his throat. "Why didn't you tell my family?" Morgan asked at last.

Hotch turned to him darkly. "We all have secrets and it should be our decision whether we keep them to ourselves or not." Hotch said gently before leaving the room.

_We all have secrets… _

**The End**


End file.
